Soñador y Soñadores

By Rafael Díaz

On June 8, 2013 the solo show entitled Soñador y Soñadores was introduced in the 2BLEÓ workshop. This proposal, presented by Omar Obdulio Peña Forty (presenting artist and 2BLEÓ’s owner) was composed of a series of 7 drawings, 2 installations, a series of 5 portraits in acrylic and another acrylic piece that helped sustain the exhibition’s purpose. OOPF said that exploration between his two vocations (barber shop and the visual arts) led him to experiment with new mediums and techniques in both fields. His first exploration was using paper and hair as lines, with which he drew with and even made portraits out of them. Then he emphasized into the problem of the barbershop and identified what later would become his new creative research, the fringes (refining of the hair’s edges). 

According to OOPF, fringes have pronounced visual connotations, sometimes resting on signs (for better or worse) between sectors/segments of society, a kind of attribute that identifies you with a particular part of the population. From here comes his next nine years worth of creations, inspiration and artistic commentary. OOPF argued that Soñador y soñadores responds to the immediacy that lurks the social crisis in our country, and in a way, it raises an easier understanding for the sectors that appeal. This argument is completely accurate, because the sample reflects a mastery of the subject and an understanding to the medium being used - both art itself and the barbershop- who converse naturally and accurately set forththe question that rests upon them.

The gallery is a space for reflection, thought, analysis, sometimes serious, sometimes humorous conversations, but always inviting you to contribute. The same thing happens at the barbershop. This space tends to be one of many conversations and lots of interaction. It is a place where it is okay to share your opinion, whether serious or humorous, without having to face the constant judgment of the outside world. 2BLEÓ’s show was certainly a delight. Illustrations have always characterized OOPF and his installations were top-notch. OOPF has been recognized and awarded twice by the International Art Critics Association. He has also been the 1st price winner of the Lexus with the Arts Fellowship in 2011, as well as being recognized in the Youth Art Contest Oriental Group and being invited to participate in multiple group exhibitions and biennials in Puerto Rico, Latin America, USA and Europe. Evidently, he is one of the great prospects in Puerto Rican art. We wish Omar Obdulio Peña Forty great success in his career and his new project 2BLEÓ. Congratulations!

Books We Want

By Francheska N. Quiñones

When winding down on these scorching summer days, there is no better way to expand your vast knowledge on style than by reading this month’s desirable books.  These illustrated reads are keepsakes of cherished memories, style inspiration, life quotes, vivid coveted items and artistic discoveries.  There is much more to literary reads when browsing the pages of these decadent books.  It is a gateway of the writer’s/designer’s mind while taking the readers by their fingertips and guiding them into their lavish world.  It is a way of communicating the melodic silence their clothes/illustrations have created.  In this handpicked selection of lovely reads, we start off with Grace Coddington’s celebrated memoir, Grace.  It tells the story of the feisty red headed editor’s early life as a model up to her illustrious present days as American Vogue's Creative Director.  Alexa Chung’s It and Dior’s Impressions are set to be released this Fall.  Nevertheless, you should mark them on your wish list.  Alexa’s It is no memoir; it is a recollection of images and witty quotes that brand what is the Chung name.  Dior’s Impressions embarks the commencement of Christian Dior elegant line while infusing his artistic creations with the impressionistic era.  Although those two books are coming to a bookshop near you in short months, Kate Spade released early this year Things We Love, a quirky coffee table book with vibrant photographic muses to spice up your sun to moonlit life.  Things come to a philosophic halt when the knowledge from the most pristine lady is broken down into quaint little lessons to fit your lifestyle.  Karen Karbo’s The Gospel According to Coco Chanel is the little black book every woman needs to walk into the elegant life with champagne in hand.  These five books are sure to brighten your senses and make existence a joyous and vivacious one.     

MATTEmatters: Some break the shell

By Marcela Filomena

 

Well, dear readers (I'm assuming some of you actually read what I write), this little love affair of ours has been going on for two months now...and I have yet to hear from a single, solitary one of you.  Seriously, feel free to participate, start up some lively debate (on our Matte Facebook page, on my personal one, on my pinterest), say you love something I've posted or hate it or anything in between.  Without feedback, is this simply an exercise in futility?

 

In any case, this week's post uses the film selection as the connecting link. Enjoy:

 

film - Those of you who have been following Park Chan-Wook's development since 2002's Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance are familiar with the director's penchant for extreme violence- but his use of subtlety may catch you by surprise in his newest film: Stoker.  Starring Mia Wasikowska, Nicole Kidman and Matthew Goode, Park takes the classic thriller and wraps it in his signature picture-book flourishes and tormented idiom. It's a full-blown gothic nightmare, with cadavers in the freezer, shocking shower scenes and and an evil uncle to boot, but don't be fooled by the conventions of the genre and the overt and covert Hitchcock references.  The movie is a smorgasbord of style with a capital S; beautifully photographed and scored, with magnified sound effects and gorgeous shots of all three actors involved.
 

 

design - In a pivotal point in this week's film, creepy Uncle Charlie offers saddle-shoe-addicted India her first pair of adult heels, a lovely pair in red alligator.  To complete her transformation into a cold-blooded adult killer, however, she still needs a wardrobe to match.  Insert Biyan's S/S 2013 collection, balancing elaborate beadwork and embroidery with flowing, contemporary silhouettes, perfect for a girl just beginning to ripen.  Using recurring floral motifs inspired by the Pacific, these princess frocks and separates combine old and new to create a feeling of timelessness. Indeed, Indonesian Biyan Wannatmadja has cred to spare, having studied in both the Muller & Sohn Privatmodeschule (Dusseldorf) and the London College of Fashion, not to mention having created a fashion empire that includes a ready-to-wear line, diffusion collection, streetwear venture and Biyan Bridal, all of which are wildly successful nationally and abroad.  His recent inclusion in Net-A-Porter insures his continued success and our continued interest, especially since we can finally get our grubby little hands on his clothing.

art - A fountain of cobalt feathers splays out of an iron-grated fireplace like an oil slick.  White and gray twist into a contorted Escher shape, knotted like a plumed snake turning in on itself.  Kate MccGwire's work plays with duality- the softness of feathers, the associations with flight, and transforms them into heaviness.  The finished work is both natural and alien, poised on the threshold to a different world. As powerful testaments to the darkness within, her creatures are faceless and silent, whether trapped in antique medical cabinets or spilling out onto the floor. While our film's spectacular art direction and coloring are echoed in the sculptures, it is their ominous undertones of suffocation and sensuousness that bring home the drama.  

 

music - This week we're keeping it in the family.  While many of you may know cult classic Nick Drake, pigeonholed as folk but so much more, you probably didn't realize the influence his mother had on his unique brand of music. Molly Drake was never officially a recording artist- but a precious few of the songs she wrote for the entertainment of family and friends were included on 2007's Family Tree. Thankfully, the Nick Drake estate recently released an eponymous album along with a booklet of her poetry.  Just as compelling as her son, Molly's quintessentially English post-war blues are the missing link to understanding Nick's music, though more because of their differences than their similarities.  One can't speak of one without the other; their meditations on the fragility of happiness and the human condition, the inherent melancholy, the sheer intimacy- nothing ever makes you feel quite like the Drakes do.  I leave you with a poem, as read by Gabrielle Drake in A Skin Too Few:

 

The Shell

 

Living grows round us like a skin

To shut away the outer desolation

For if we clearly mark the furthest deep

We should be dead long years before the grave.

But turning around within the homely shell

Of worry, discontent, and narrow joy

We grow and flourish

And rarely see the outside dark

That would confound our eyes.

 

Some break the shell.

 

I think that there are those

Who push their fingers through

The brittle walls

And make a hole.

And through this cruel slit

Stare out across the cinders of the world

With naked eyes.

They look both out and in

Knowing themselves

And too much besides.
 

 

item - Beetle and Flor make ethical skulls.  Founded in 2007, the team offers design assistance to under-served communities who depend on craft to make a living. In order to help finance these low-cost services, Christine Facella creates porcelain animal skulls, inspired by her work as a science illustrator for the Vertebrate Paleontology department at the Museum of Natural History in New York.  Each skull is meticulously made to anatomically correct specifications and then formed into lamps, pendants or left as is: slightly morbid sculptures celebrating the natural world. 

Can I Have That? - Audrey Hepburn’s Style

By Francheska N. Quiñones

Convey yourself into the 1950s, where diners, drive-in movies, James Dean and Frank Sinatra kind of men roamed the streets.  The clothes were always pristine and elegantly hued; it was a life lived in detailed perfection.  To make this period more enchanting, a beauty of a lady by the name of Audrey Hepburn captured everyone’s eye with her softly structured face and impeccable attire.  With every stride, more and more men and women became hypnotized with her hidden charm.  Audrey was the kind of dame that exuded loveliness without uttering a single word.  Her clothes spoke for her, evoking the bubbly ladylike personality she so elegantly possessed.  Airy tea length skirts, a crisp white blouse, court shoes and structural purses where the key staples to her wardrobe.  With two major movies centered around the clothes, “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” and “Funny Face”, Audrey was one to always be experimenting with fashion by infusing the classic with what was modern in that era.  Timeless pearl earrings would be a must with her attire, a leather band watch and cat eye sunglasses added the special flair to complete the outfit.  This belle never let the clothes wear her; her facade and allure made the clothes sparkle with delight.  Up until this day, Audrey Hepburn seems to entrance us with her finesse and genteel style.